Sortakopita

Ok, I know–I claim to hate cutesy recipe names, but this one fit too well to pass up. I’m not going to recount the whole recipe for you, because I didn’t love it, but I would encourage you to check out the original and try your own version.

Spinach, you are my friend. You go with and in just about any recipe, and I totally get you. Recently, howevs, even you could not save me from difficult-recipe-turns-into-blah-dinner disappointment. Here’s how it went down:

While thinking about planning dinner and coming up short on ideas, I spent some solid time perusing Susan V.’s blog, Fat Free Vegan (as per uzh). I found this delightful-looking recipe for Spinach and Artichoke Pie, which I thought might hit that spot that needs hitting when I’m craving cheese or other past-life decadence. Susan’s pie sounded like something you’d get in a Greek restaurant, full of feta and milkfat and bursting with salt and oil, but she’d miraculously created a (mostly fat-free) vegan version.

What I ended up with was just plain blah (and maybe even blecch).

Unfortunately, I thought I’d be all creative with this one, so I don’t know whether the blah-ness* was my fault or the original recipe’s fault. I turned the casserole-style pie into individual little handpies, which involved cutting the phyllo into strips, dropping some filling at one end, and folding them like flags.

Strips of phyllo, ready to roll

Cute little handpies (blandpies?)

Because FFV’s recipes are normally soooo good, and because Susan raved about this one in particular, I’m thinking perhaps the flavors didn’t stew together as they would have if cooked in the intended form. Still, take my advice if you attempt this one: do some serious taste-testing of the filling before you deal with the phyllo dough. I’d maybe add more olives, onions, and artichokes than called for, and cut down on the amount of tofu. It might also benefit from some sundried tomatoes (as most things do).

The best thing I learned from this experience, though, was how to work with phyllo dough–that part worked out perfectly. See the paragraph just before the original recipe for details. The taste may have been bland, but they sure looked pretty!

*Wife actually loved these, so maybe my taste buds were having an off day. They definitely have potential!